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Phoenix Brethren
The Phoenix Brethren are a mysterious Loyalist Space Marine Chapter of unknown origin and uncertain lineage, though rumours abound that they are the remnants of the mysterious Flame Falcons, one of the many Chapters created during the 21st 'Cursed' Founding that were afflicted with rampant mutations. After they began showing signs of a disturbing mutation that caused their bodies to spontaneously burst into flames that did not burn their own flesh, their Chapter homeworld of Lethe was assaulted by the Grey Knights. A small number of Flame Falcons miraculously escaped this dire fate and fled for parts unknown. These surviving Astartes now operate secretly in the thinly-settled Podomos Reach with the tactic support of a few merchant chartists, frontier governors and an equally secretive Adeptus Mechanicus sect. Chapter History First Founding Originally known as the Flame Falcons, the Phoenix Brethren are one of the hard luck 21st Founding Chapters. Towards the end of their first century of existence a strange new ability appeared amongst the Falcons; in the heat of battle some of them would burst into shimmering white flames that left the Marine unharmed but sometimes reduced his opponent to ashes. The Chapter took this as a sign of the Emperor's favour. The Inquisition thought differently. Several Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus descended upon the Chapter's homeworld of Lethe, supported by a detachment of Grey Knights, in a surprise attack on the unsuspecting Flame Falcons, who still managed to put up a respectable defence that lasted several weeks. The Grey Knights, rather than calling in more of their own, drew additional support from the White Consuls Chapter which help bring the conflict toa a close. The fortress-monastery of the Falcons was completely destroyed and the Chapter was declared Perdita ('Forgotten'). Unknown to their enemies, the full Battle-Brothers of the Chapter had sacrificed themselves to cover the escape of their Scout Company and a cadre of Apothecaries and Techmarines bearing the Chapter's precious gene-seed and the Chief Librarian with his most promising acolytes. Second Founding The surviving Flame Falcons landed on Zode II, a frontier agri-world of the Podromos Reach, in a hijacked cargo ship with nothing but their armour, personal weapons and gene-seed. They numbered six squads of young Scouts, each commanded by an experienced Sergeant. The survivors also included the 10th company's Chaplain and Apothecary, four other Apothecaries and an equal number of Techmarines which carried the rescued gene-seed. There was also the Chapter's sole Librarian Epistolary and three young Lexicani, all under the command of Captain Markus Kronus. They discovered that Zode II and its neighboring systems had been suffering raids from the Craftworlds of Dylath-Leen and Ilek-Vad for several decades. Repeated appeals to the sub-Sector Governor on Thraan had gone unanswered and the advent of a company of Astartes - even in the Flame Falcon's state - was greeted as a miracle direct from the Emperor. Captain Kronus took command of the ad-hoc force of militia and a few cheap mercenary bands who'd been trying to protect the six frontier worlds and laid an ambush for the raiders that had them retreating in bloodied confusion the next time they came and followed it up with a strike on Dylath-Leen, the nearest of the two craftworlds. Tricked into believing a counter-attack by a full company of Astartes was on its way Dylath-Leen and her ally Ilek-Vad retreated into the inter-arm void leaving the handful of Frontier systems in peace. No explanations were offered or asked but the leaders of the six worlds clearly realized that the Flame Falcons were running from something and made a tacit offer of refuge which Falcons accepted. However they chose to settle on Zode II's dead twin to avoid bringing down retribution on their mortal friends should the Grey Knights or Inquisition ever catch up with them. Renegade Millennia The Flame Falcons assumed a new name, The Phoenix Brethren, symbolic of their fiery rebirth. As several millennia passed they began to feel secure in their back-system fastness even occasionally making forays beyond the Reach but for the most part they dedicated themselves to defending the Reach's coreward Frontier from the Eldar of Dylath-Leen and Ilek-Vad and from the stranger, darker things lurking in the burnt out systems and dead worlds of the inter-arm void. The Brethren excavated a fortress monastery they called their Eyrie beneath a jagged range of low mountains near Zode I's equator. It grew gradually over a span of five thousand years from a company sized bunker to a maze of barracks, storage magazines and Thunderhawk bays capable of housing a standard sized Chapter of Marines with a support colony of Chapter Servants. The Phoenix Brethren have drawn their recruits and supplies chiefly from Zode II but the other six systems also contribute. For generations the Brethren made do with carapace armor and smuggled weapons, their few treasured suits of power armor reserved for the Chapter Master, company captains and chief sergeants until an alliance with the secretive and heterodox Mechanicus Mission on Sarnath enabled them to obtain more power armor - though only enough or the first five companies - and a sufficiency of power and plasma weapons, along with more than a few new enemies to fight. The Frontier governors welcomed having an Astartes Chapter among them and were not inclined to ask embarrassing questions. The Administratum on Thraan tranquilly ignored the Brethren's existence as it was not registered in their data banks. The Sub-sector Governor and the Imperial Naval and Guard commanders on Hlanith deliberately hid this very useful resource from the Sector Governor, and most especially from the official Astartes Chapters. Black Sun Crusade Current State of the Chapter Participation in the Black Sun Crusade put paid to the Brethren's secrecy. By the time Medrengard had been forced back into Chaos where it belonged everybody knew about their presence in the Reach and their 'sanctifying flame'. The White Consul proconsul made the obvious deduction but sympathetic members of the Alirian Conclave were quick to point that there was no proof of a connection between the Brethren and the Flame Falcons and managed to delay action long enough for the Brethren to make a quick and quiet exit on their new Battle Barge the Phoenix Ascendant, formerly known as the Lion's Roar, received from the Dark Angels' Successor Chapter, the Lions Triumphant, in exchange for the Brethren's fortress-monastery on Zode II. Notable Campaigns Chapter Homeworld Podromos Reach The Phoenix Brethren currently reside in the Podromos Reach, located in the Aliris Sector. This sector of Imperial space is located to the galactic south of the now-destroyed fortress world of Cadia, in a star rich part of the Segmentum Obscurus, between the Eye of Terror and the Segmentum Pacificus. The Podromos Reach is part of the coreward fringe of the Sector, which is made up of widely scattered stars trailing way into the emptiness between spiral arms. The darkness of the void seems to press in on those stars with an ominous hint of things lurking in its depths. The reach is full of dead worlds; Aeldari worlds destroyed by the Fall; xenos-worlds cleansed of life by the Great Crusade, but littered by the dangerous remains of ancient evils. Zode I There is very little official information on the Imperial world of Zode I, other than it is part of a double planetary system. Zode I is one of the Reach's dead worlds. It is now the home of the Renegade Phoenix Brethren and the Order Militant of the Burning Rose. It's sister world - Zode II - is a frontier agri-world, under-settled and half-feral. Fortress-Monastery The Phoenix Brethren's formidable fortress-monastery, known simply as the Eyrie was constructed after the Chapter settled the dead world of Zode I. This foreboding citadel was first excavated beneath the jagged mountain range of low mountains near the planet's equator. Over the span of five thousand years, the Eyrie continued to grow - from a company-sized bunker, in the beginning, to a formidable fortress - on part with some of the mightiest fortress-monasteries of the Adeptus Astartes. Built into the nearly the entirety of a mountain range, the Eyries consists of a maze of barracks and various functional specialist facilities, including an Apothecarion, Reclusium, Reliquary, Librarius, Armorium, great hall, main audience chamber, parade grounds, dormitories, training grounds, crypts and even a massive auditorium. There are also storage magazines and massive aerial bays for the storage of the Chapter's Thunderhawk and Storm Eagle gunships and transports. The Eyrie is also home to thousands of Chapter Serfs, housing a veritable support colony of mortal servants and functionaries to perform the day-to-day routines of upkeep, maintenance and standing security over the fortress-monastery. Externally, the Eyrie is comprised of several dozen of ramparts, watchtowers and bastions. Throughout the mountain range, hidden macro-cannon turrets, heavy bolter bunkers and missile batteries scan the horizon for foes, prepared to unleash their deadly ordnance at a moment's notice. Enveloping the entire citadel are powerful, shimmering void shields, which can protect the Eyrie from an orbital barrage. Chapter Organisation Command Ranks Junior Ranks Line Ranks Specialist Formations Order of Battle Headquarters Companies Combat Doctrine As a successor Chapter of the Raven Guard the Phoenix Brethren share their progenitors' predilection for carefully coordinated small unit strikes on targets selected through painstaking intelligence gathering. Unlike the Raven Guard the Brethren do engage in frontal assault relying on the shock and awe inherent in being attacked by ten foot armored giants on fire! Like the Raven Guard they deploy as a heavy infantry force. As Renegades they have no access to Marine specific vehicles such as Predators or Land Raiders, and of course no Dreadnoughts. They managed to obtain jump-packs, land speeders and attack bikes as well as standard weaponry through smugglers but it was not until they made their alliance the Adeptus Mechanicus on Sarnath that they were able to build up a fleet of thunderhawks and armored rhinos. The Chapter had no warp capable ships and relied on a few friendly Chartist Captains for interstellar transport. Predictably the Brethren go in for flamers and plasma weapons in a big way. You might say setting things on fire is their signature tactic. Their Mechanicus allies were able to supply them with some power armor - though not enough for the full chapter. These were suits of the ancient Corvus design and even included a few sets of Terminator Dreadnought armor. Where and how the Mechanicus had procured them was a question the Brethren prefered not to ask. Chapter Culture The Phoenix Brethren are one of the rare Astartes Chapters to worship the Emperor as God, not just venerate him as the epitome of Humanity, reasoning that their 'gift' of the 'Sanctifying Flame' could only have been bestowed by God. The mutation that causes Brethren to burst into white flames, harmless to themselves but fatal to the Chaos tainted, remains a mystery. It does NOT seem to be a psyker talent as it appears in Brethren testably lacking the curse. It seems in short to be closer to the miraculous feats wrought by Sisters Militant through Faith than to warpcraft. The Gift normally manifests itself only after a Marine has served for some decades. Usually the first occurence is in the heat of battle but there have been cases of Brothers bursting into flame for the first time while rapt in devotion. Chapter Beliefs Chapter Gene-Seed Like their genetic forbears, the Raven Guard, the process to transform a neophyte into an Astartes is notably more difficult than the average Chapter. Many casualties sustained early in training only add to the slow and limited recruitment process of the Chapter. Further degradation in the gene-seed down the millennia has caused several of the implants to fail. Due to this degeneration, several of the genetically-engineered organs no longer function properly or simply no longer even develop after they are implanted as zygotes. This includes both the Mucranoid organ which allows a Space Marine to survive extremes of heat, cold or even the vacuum of space, and the Betcher's Gland, which allows a battle-brother to spit a highly corrosive, venomous toxin. Gene-Seed Curse: Immolating Aura Like many Chapters created during the Cursed Founding, the Phoenix Brethren also suffer from inexplicable genetic idiosyncrasies. The Battle-Brothers of this Chapter are cursed with a terrible mutation that causes their bodies to become wreathed in flame. The Chapter's genetic curse does not manifest until after a neophyte has become a full Astartes - usually manifesting in the heat of battle when the fighting is most fierce, causing the battle-brother to spontaneously immolate. Covered in flames in which they themselves are immune, these afflicted battle-brothers will fight with renewed savagery, bringing their unfettered wrath down upon their foes. At first, this ability will only activate intermittently, but as time goes on a battle-brother is unable to control his immolating abilities and his body will continually radiate with burning flame. On several occasions it has been observed that some Phoenix Brethren will enter a sort of flame-wreathed berserker state. As a battle-brother enters this pyromortic state his genetic curse enters its final stages, burning his essence in one grand inferno before the individual's life force is snuffed out altogether. Imperial scholars theorise that intense experience or exertion possibly accelerates the genetic curse, bringing incidences of pyromortis into being prematurely. The Inquisition is particularly uncompromising in punishing such mutants wherever it encounters them. Notable Members Chapter Appearance Chapter Colours The Phoenix Brethren primarily wear golden bronze battle-plate. A red Aquila or Imperialis on the chest guard is red in colour with the exception of the skull, which is silver in colour. The shoulder pauldron insets are coloured white, while the trim is a deep red colour. A deep red squad specialty symbol stenciled on the right shoulder pauldron indicates a battle-brother's squad specialty (Tactical, Devastator, Assault or Veteran). A white roman numeral stenciled on the squad specialty symbol indicates squad assignment. A white roman numeral stenciled on the left poleyn (knee guard) indicates company assignment. When a battle-brother enters into an immolating state, flames will will burst from the eyes, gorget, shoulder pauldron trim and any other crease of the battle-plate. Though their body is wreathed in flames, miraculously, the individual battle-brother's body, gear or weapons are unaffected by the incandescent fire. But should an enemy be foolish or unfortunate enough to get within close proximity of a burning battle-brother, their bodies will be reduced to ash by the immolating flames of perdition, within a matter of seconds. Chapter Badge The Phoenix Brethren's Chapter badge is a stylised phoenix - a mythical bird of ancient Terran legends that cyclically dies in a show of flames and combustion, and then is reborn again. An appropriate and potent symbol, as it represents both renewal as well as rebirth - an apt symbol for the Chapter - as it mirrors their own rebirth following the tragic eradication of their forebears centuries earlier. Chapter Fleet Chapter Relics Relations Feel free to add your own Allies The Cult of Sarnath This deviant Mechanicus cultus is the Brethren's most important ally as they are dependent on them for mechanical support. The Mechanicus Explorator Mission was established on the Dead World of Sarnath a few decades after its discovery in the 19th c. of M39. The planet proved a treasure trove of xenos archaeotech a temptation that has led the members of the mission pretty far from orthodox Mechanicus doctrine though they have successfully hidden the fact from their superiors. The Cultists believe they have successfully appeased the distressed xeno machine spirits and so can make safe use of some of the ancient technology but the planet is also Chaos tainted hence the importance of the Cult's alliance with the Phoenix Brethren. As the Podromos Reach was a warzone during the Great Crusade the Cult has found a great deal of early Imperial technology as well, including a shipment of Astartes power armor apparently never delivered to the intended recipient much of which has been passed on to the Phoenix Brethren over the last two thousand years. Douchard Bagge This somewhat unsavory but extremely successful Rogue Trader has been supplying the Brethren with top of the line flamers, plasma weapons and other goodies for a number of years now. They have some difficulty meeting his prices but the goods are worth it. Also supplies from him don't carry the kind of baggage logistical support from the Cult of Sarnath carries. The Lions Triumphant The Brethren rather unexpectedly bonded with this fleet-based Dark Angels Successor Chapter during the Crusade. The good connections between them led to the Lions handing over one of their two Battle-Barges in return for the Eyrie on Zode II and stepping into the Brethren's role as defenders of the Podromos Reach. They remain in communication, the Lions using their remaining ships to transport recruits and material to the Brethren. Lost Sons This doomed warband of Astartes escaped from the Eye of Terror is the Brethren's new ally in their war against the Harakhte Dynasty in the Mandragoran Stars on the fringes of the Empire. Feel free to add your own Enemies His Divine Majesty's Inquisition Grey Knights White Consuls Notable Quotes Feel free to add your own By the Phoenix Brethren Feel free to add your own About the Phoenix Brethren Sources *[[:w:c:warhammer40kfanon:Phoenix Brethren|'Phoenix Brethren']] (Original Article) Gallery Phoenix Brethren Terminator.png|A Veteran Marine of the Phoenix Brethren's elite 1st Company arrayed in the one of the Chapter's twelve remaining suits of Terminator Armour. Phoenix Brethren Tactical.png|A Phoenix Brethren Tactical Marine arrayed in relic power armour that was inherited from one of the Chapter's 'Original Brothers'. Phoenix Brethren Assault.png|A Phoenix Brethren Assault Company Captain wearing relic Mk VI 'Corvus' pattern battle-plate. Phoenix Brethren Devastator.png|A Phoenix Brethren Devastator Marine. Phoenix Brethren Scout.png|A Phoenix Brethren Scout Marine. Note: Scout Armour is worn by nearly two-thirds of the Brethren. Category:Imperium Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Space Marines Category:Raven Guard Successors Category:21st Founding